CARABIDAE (COLEOPTERA) SELECTED NATURAL ENVIRONMENTS IN PUSZCZA BORECKA

The paper presents the results of research on Carabidae of a mixed forest site and an oak-hornbeamforest site carried out between 2004 and 2011 within the Integrated Natural Environment Monitoring BaseStation in Puszcza Borecka. Carabidae were captured into glycol-filled Barber pitfall traps between May andSeptember every year in five one-month catch cycles. The aim of the study was to characterise assemblagestructures of Carabidae in these two habitats with regard to selected abiotic environmental factors. A total of13,227 individuals of Carabidae representing 31 species were captured. The total yield in the mixed forest was8,023 individuals of 25 species, compared to 5,204 individuals of 26 species in the oak-hornbeam forest. Bothhabitats supported species associated with forest, open and forested areas, and open areas. The speciesrepresented all zoogeographical elements found in Poland. However, their proportions differed between thetwo habitats. There was also a difference in the pattern of activity, with peak activity of the mixed forestassemblage seen in August and in the oak-hornbeam forest, in July. Species diversity, measured with theShannon-Wiener index (H’), and evenness, measured with the Pielou index (J’), were H’ = 1.8981,J’ = 0.5897 for the mixed mesic forest assemblage and H’ = 2.1328, J’ = 0.6546 for the oak-hornbeam forestsite. Catch results were analysed with regard to such factors as air temperature, ground temperature,precipitation, relative air humidity, and air levels of SO2 and NO2. There was a statistically significant positivecorrelation between the Carabidae catch yield and air temperature at 2 metres in both habitats: for the mixedforest, r = 0.4, df = 38, p = 0.01; for the oak-hornbeam forest, r = 0.35, df = 38, p = 0.02; and between catchyield and ground temperature at a depth of 0.05 m: for the mixed forest, r = 0.49, df = 38, p = 0.001; for the oak-hornbeam forest, r = 0.42, df = 38, p = 0.007. Correlations between catch yield and the remaining factorswere less marked and reached statistical significance only in three cases.Keywords: Carabidae, nature monitoring, atmospheric factors, environmental pollution